F1 is back! Touchdown in Melbourne as rivals count down to season curtain-raiser

The wait is almost over. As excitement builds ahead of the new season's beginning, staff at Albert Park are preparing the venue for the opening weekend of Formula One action.

Long before stars such as Lewis Hamilton, Jenson Button, Sebastian Vettel and Sergio Perez take to the track for practice sessions later this week, the track for the Australian Grand Prix is being primed for the first race of the season.

In the pictures below, we can see the immense effort team members and organisers go to before each race, as covered cars are lifted by forklift trucks into pit lanes and HGVs roll in delivering millions of pounds' worth of equipment.

Easy does it! Daniel Ricciardo's Formula One car is unloaded into Pit Lane at Albert Park